


Unexpected

by old fics (Lothiriel84)



Category: The Mentalist
Genre: F/M, Family, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-04
Updated: 2012-09-04
Packaged: 2017-11-13 13:44:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/504127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lothiriel84/pseuds/old%20fics
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had took him a week to tidy up his memories. That was probably the reason he hadn't detected earlier the reason for Lisbon's odd behavior.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Accidents

**Author's Note:**

> This is a sort of episode tag to "Fugue in Red" - though things develope in a different way from what we see on that episode...

They had told him a month had passed between his accident and the day they had found that red smiley painted on a crime scene – just a week ago. Red John's smiley.

At that moment his memory had come back like a flood, threatening to drown him.

Kind of ironic, actually, since he had literally been drowned – all right, _nearly_ drowned – exactly a month before, and yet couldn't actually remember it now.

That's how a fugue state works, doctors said. As long as you are in it, you can't remember your previous life. When you get your memory back, you don't remember anything about your fugue period.

The guys had admitted he'd been a tad weirder that usual, nothing more. Since he always tended to act in an unpredictable way, they probably wouldn't even had noticed the change if doctors hadn't warned them about it.

It had took him a week to tidy up his memories. That was probably the reason he hadn't detected earlier the reason for Lisbon's odd behavior.

For Lisbon had been acting strangely enough. It was pretty obvious that she was on tenterhooks about something. Moreover, she rarely joined them on the field now. Not to mention the fact that she had switched from coffee to tea…

Yeah, even a child of two could have guessed that. The guys had probably known it for a while, yet didn't tell him – probably they'd rather avoid messing with his already tangled mind.

He sighed and stood up, heading towards Lisbon's office. Time for a talk.

She shot him a nervous glance as he sat on her couch, but she didn't say anything. Maybe she hoped he'd just come in to have his nap in the quiet of her office. Well, he had quite a different purpose right now.

"When are you going to tell the team?"

She carefully avoided his gaze. "What should I tell them?"

"You know it. About the baby".

She let out her breath in a sharp hiss. Of course Jane would have guessed that, sooner or later. She'd rather have had it later, however.

"Why should I? That's none of their business".

"Come on, Lisbon. Who's the one that always says we're like a family? That's a secret you shouldn't be keeping from your friends, don't you think?"

"It's no secret at all if you know it. I suppose the whole building has been told by now, correct?"

"You hurt me, Lisbon. I'd never share something about you in such a careless way. I think that the guys made it out a couple of days ago – even before I did, I have to admit. I've been slightly distracted lately".

"I'm sorry for what you've been through, Jane", she said softly.

He swept her sympathy aside with a wave of his hand.

"I'm okay. It's you the one I'm worried about".

She tried a little smile. "Oh, I'm fine too. Really".

"No, you're not", Jane simply stated.

She took a deep breath. She felt too emotionally beaten to have a conversation of that kind – with Jane, of all people. No way out of it now, anyway.

"I can deal with it, Jane. I'm a grown up woman after all".

"What about the father?"

A heavy silence fell. She closed her eyes, leaning into her chair.

"He doesn't know about it. And I don't want him to know".

"Why?"

That little word nearly threw her out of balance. She had had that argument with herself many times now, and a little voice at the back of her head kept on telling that the father had the right to know.

 _I can't_ , her mind answered for the umpteenth time. _I can't do this to him. Such news would kill him. I don't want to hurt him. I…_

_I should have stopped him. I really should have._

_What have I done?_

"Teresa".

Jane's gaze was very gentle now. "You don't have to tell me. I just want you to know that I'm here for you, if you want someone to talk to. We're all here for you, Teresa. Should you need anything, just name it. Understood?"

Her eyes brimmed with tears at the affection he was showing her. She surely didn't expect that.

"Yeah. Thank you very much".


	2. All's well that ends well

She had no idea of how Jane had persuaded her into letting him go with her at the first ultrasound scan. Oh, he had behaved, she surely couldn't complain about that.

Yet she had wanted to die when the doctor had congratulated Jane as the father. Of course he'd been ready to point out that he was actually just a friend. Which only had made her feel worse, as a matter of fact.

There had been also another awkward moment. When she first saw her tiny baby on the screen, she had instinctively reached for his hand. A few seconds later – as she realized what she had done – she had tried to withdraw her hand, but Jane didn't let her.

" _It's okay, Teresa"_ , he had told her. _"No need to be ashamed about that"._

Now she just wanted him to go, so she could bury her head between the cushions of her sofa and cry a bit. She really felt like it.

Jane didn't seem inclined to leave her apartment, however.

"Teresa, what's wrong?"

She didn't answer at all. The simple fact that he had called her by her first name made her feel a lump in her throat.

_Everything. Everything is wrong, that's what it is._

He sat next to her, his hand gently rubbing her back. "Teresa, I know that you're scared. But you don't need to be. You raised your three younger brothers when you were just a girl. I'm perfectly sure you'll make a great mother".

She shook her head in disbelief.

"Come on, you're born to be a mother. You're always mothering every member of your team, have you ever noticed that? You can't possibly be a bad mom for your own child".

He took her hand. "We'll help you, you know. Your kid will have plenty of uncles and aunts to look after him. There will be sweet auntie Grace, and big clumsy uncle Wayne. Even ever-serious uncle Kimball would go as far as smiling in front of your baby. And, of course, there will be uncle Patrick. His favorite".

He had intended that as a way to make her smile, and was startled when she suddenly burst into tears.

"Sorry… did I say something wrong? Don't cry, Teresa. Please".

He hugged her, desperately searching for something to say – something that could calm her.

"It's yours, Patrick", he heard her mumbling against his jacket.

He didn't understand what she was trying to tell him. Maybe that it was his fault is she was crying?

She finally looked at him, whispering between her tears: "The baby… is yours".

Her confession only confused him even more.

"I don't understand. I… we never…"

"It was… just a few days after your accident. It's not your fault, you… you weren't quite yourself. I knew it, and I should have stopped you. It was just… I was so tired, and so shocked about nearly losing you…".

She took in a shaky breath. "I'm terribly sorry for all this".

Jane felt the room spinning around him as the unexpected revelation sunk in. His mind went back to a few hours ago, when he was beside her watching her baby on that screen. A wild thought had crossed his mind then – though he had immediately tried to force it away.

_How would it be if it were my child?_

Well, it seemed that his unconscious desire had actually been fulfilled.

"I'm going to be a father…", he said in wonder.

Then he pulled her into a tight embrace – careful not to harm her or the baby – and started placing small kisses on her forehead.

"Why didn't you tell me before?"

His voice was gentle, full of tenderness. Not at all what she was expecting.

She thought he would be afraid – even angry, maybe. It had never occurred to her that he could be happy about that. Really, really happy.

"I was terrified that the thought of having another child might be too much for you", she admitted. "I… I didn't want you to feel guilty about betraying your wife and daughter".

"My silly little Lisbon…", he murmured into her hair. "Do you know what I was thinking while I held your hand in that room?"

"No idea".

"I was kind of regretting the fact that you were having a child with someone else".

She made a sound that was something between a sob and a laugh, and tightened her hold on his jacket.

Both of them were silent for a while, thrilled by the same thought.

_We're going to be a family._

Then, out of the blue, Jane decided to satisfy his own curiosity.

"How was our night together?"

She blushed crimson, clearly refusing to answer.

"Come on, Teresa. It's quite unfair that you're the only one who remembers it".

"It felt… good", she muttered at last – the slight tremble in her voice giving her away.

He smiled. "Then it's a pity I can't remember it. Maybe we should try it again".

"Jane!". She tried to sound scandalized, without quite succeeding.

"Well, why not?"

Lisbon had no sensible answer to that question.

_Why not, after all?_

She buried her face into his vest. Maybe what had happened that night wasn't as bad as she had always thought…


End file.
